Gardening Articles: Landscaping :: Trees, Shrubs, & Vines

Get Some Good Vibrations

by Susan Littlefield

Evergreen junipers are popular for the low-maintenance color and structure they provide year round in the landscape. But their prickly foliage isn't always fun to work around. But Good Vibrations®, a new juniper from Proven Winners, is soft to the touch. It also offers a dynamic show of color changes as the seasons progress. In spring, the new growth is an eye-catching chartreuse that changes to bright yellow and finally takes on orange hues as the weather cools in fall.

A cultivar ('Hegedus') of Juniperus horizontalis, Good Vibrations® grows 12-18 inches high, with a spreading growth habit that eventually extends 7 to 9 feet wide. Like all junipers, it does best in full sun and well-drained soil and tolerates heat and drought well.

It is great choice for rock gardens or mass plantings, especially as a groundcover on hard-to-mow banks and is adapted to Zones 4-9. Colorful, changing foliage, easy care, and soft, touchable foliage -- that will give any gardener some good vibrations!